For the past 1270 years, the Shunie ritual has been held at Todaiji temple. Artificial camellias surround the eleven-faced kannon statue in Nigatsudo hall. The crimson, white, and yellow Japanese paper that constructs the flower is dyed at the studio of Sachio Yoshioka, a master and historian of traditional plant dyeing. The crimson is dyed using safflower, the yellow with gardenia. The monks who serve the ceremony assemble the flowers. They then cut out camellia branches from the mountain behind Todaiji and place the flowers on the branches. Just as the ritual of Shunie will always continue, so will the traditional way of bringing out the deep red color from safflower be forever passed down. Now, camellias and plums are in bloom, and then come the cherry blossoms. With the flowers comes spring.